[Bonjoy]

YYFY I did my project at last!

This buttress is at the bottom end of the dale opposite Streamside Buttress (home of recently added boulder probs Bog Standard and Petrified Snails). The best approach is to park in the layby just after Millers dale, walk up the road to the leftward bend and then take the footpath leading down into the bottom of Blackwell Dale. After crossing the stream and wall turn left and follow your nose updale until the crag is reach. If coming in from the top of the dale it’s easiest to gain the top of Black and Deckout via the gully on its left and then traverse the hillside until the crag is reached.
Prior to my routes the crag had one decent looking E5 Big Youth, which has now shed its peg and probably hasn’t been climbed in decades, a couple of scrappy low grade things, and an A3 Big Daddy somewhere left of BY.



Giant Haystacks 8b – The left line of bolts up a very steep bulge on excellent compact rock. A few easy moves land you at a good pocket, exiting this into the slots above is the bouldery meat of the route. You can work the beta out for yourself, but a rubber topped shoe on the left foot was essential for the way I did it. Thereafter an easier but still sustained set of moves mostly on slots and pockets gains the belay.

Yoot’s Manoeuvre 7c+ - The righthand line. Essentially two boulder problems with a juggy shakeout in the middle. The first prob involves long moves through a bulge off a big kneebar, which is them powerful to come out of. The upper  bit up a steep rib involves a huge slap off a slopey pocket into a juggy flake. It is escapable in the middle but in reality I think the effort of downclimbing back into the line after climbing up into the groove would negate any rest benefit.

I’m particularly pleased with Giant Haystacks. Good to find a Peak sport project close to my current limit, on great rock, with a sweet sequence and only one crimp needing gluing. Haven’t done any other hard boulder sport routes for a while so the grade is a best guess based on the number of sessions it took me to link the crux which felt harder than the Revelations crux to me. The way I did the crux felt solid 7C+ to me and hopefully I didn’t miss any obvious easier sequences. I suspect strong youth may do it a more basic dynamic way but I doubt it will be easier, just less tenuous. You need a proper honest belay on the crux, as like Revelations any rope weight makes a big cheating difference.
It doesn’t look seepage prone, so may stay in condition until very late in the season, but you do get a bit of dampness in a couple of the pockets. It gets shade from midday onward.

Bransby on Giant Haystacks

BTW if anyone goes on this in the near future take care with the belay. Unfortunately the rock cracked around both belay bolts when I tightened them and I need to replace with long glue ins. I’ve given them a heft testing and neither seems likely to come out, but just so you know. If concerned you could always back up to the YM belay up on the right.

[dave]

Nice one flower.

[Johnny Brown]

Name. YES. Can you give BB a naming masterclass?

[r-man]

Ace. Remember looking at this buttress years ago and being impressed. Good effort.

[Will Hunt]

 

Sendtember!

[cofe]

Nice one chicken lips.

[Wood FT]

 

[shark]

Peak 8b ? The grade that dare not speak its name

[a dense loner]

Quality looking route yoot! 

[Teaboy]

Peak 8b ? The grade that dare not speak its name

Oh crumbs, you're not thinking of changing horse at this late stage are you?

[Doylo]

Effort Bonners!

[Duncan campbell]

Nice one!!

[andy popp]

Always good to hear of a project being sent (hoping it rubs off).

The route looks great too.

[bolehillbilly]

 
Hardest FA too!
Nice one.

[Doylo]

A peak lime 8b that's not polished ! 

[dave]

A peak lime 8b that's not polished ! 

Won't take long if it's as good as it sounds.

[Bonjoy]

Peak 8b ? The grade that dare not speak its name

A bold claim I know, given some of the 8a+s in the peak. Will see if it sticks. Subjectively it seemed harder than the few 8bs I've done (Revelations, Magnetic, The Oak, euro stuff).
I'm more confident with my bouldering grades than route grades and 7C+ to the main slot is right I think and it's less 'over' at that point than Rev, Magnetic, PUTP after their respective (easier) bouldery bits. 

[Doylo]

I did a new one earlier in the year that was essentially a 7C+ on a rope. I gave it 8a+ as it just didn't seem enough for 8b.  If it had a little bit on top that would have pushed it up for sure. How did Bransby get on on your route? If he was puffing its definitely fucking hard.

[Bonjoy]

He didn't do either of the hardest moves, but it was only a one play on a rope and he didn't have a fully rubber topped left boot.

[Ru]

It sounds at least 8b to my ears.

[a dense loner]

Thought it was at least 8b as soon as I saw El mocho on a rope with no title of "El mocho nips in for a quick repeat"

[Ru]

Thought it was at least 8b as soon as I saw El mocho on a rope with no title of "El mocho nips in for a quick repeat"

Quite. I also mentally wrote off nipping in for a quick repeat at that point.

[El Mocho]

I would like to point out I had already been to the tor with Ryan 'training' I tried PUTP twice but I watched Ry try SB into PUTP about 10 times so that got me pretty knackered. Plus we had been talking about 'Ryans next girlfriend' so my mind was elsewhere.

It's prob 8b but who the fuck am I to talk about grades. Rocks good, the moves are fun, the base is nice although no herbs and it should stay dry a while longer. Get on it.

[Bonjoy]

I think there's some watercress in the brook. Does that count as herb, or is it just salad?

[Doylo]

. Plus we had been talking about 'Ryans next girlfriend' so my mind was elsewhere.

I'll chip in a few quid towards this.